Start Today Tomorrow
by viper209n
Summary: KP Pairing. She's hurt. He helps.
1. Ow

The director yelled "Action" and Peter began walking briskly from Kirsten and Sandy's bedroom. Kelly followed hurriedly a few feet behind him. Her character, Kirsten, was, yet again, cajoling his character, Sandy. Kirsten wasn't set to show her pregnancy until a few weeks so Kelly hadn't yet worn the faux belly.

She also was not wearing the usual Kirsten garb. Instead of jeans and a nice shirt, she was wearing pajama pants, a camisole, and a robe. Peter was already in his suit for the day.

He was walking into the Cohen kitchen as Kelly's line came up.

Her voice was pleading. "But Sandy…" Instead of the rest of the line, that was all Peter heard her say. After she uttered his pseudo name, he heard a loud noise radiate through the set. He figured Kelly had knocked something over. Peter was about to turn and give her a hard time about it until he heard the director and camera crews gasp and a shout of "Oh my gosh!" reverberated of the walls of the set. He turned and saw Kelly's socked feet sticking out from behind the couch.

Crew members rushed towards her and crowded around. Peter had to push his way through them all. He finally made it to her. She was knocked unconscious and there was an uncomfortable amount of blood matting her long blonde hair.

His voice caught in his throat as he attempted to rouse her. "Kelly. C'mon, Kelly, wake up." His attempts elicited a groan.

"Ow." Was all she said. Her eyes opened and slowly adjusted to the light. She saw a face and it progressively came into view. It was Peter. A small smile spread across her face but immediately she winced and groaned again.

"Someone call 911." A crew member yelled. Kelly looked up confused at Peter.

"It'll take them too long." Peter murmured, mainly to himself. Only a few heard him. "C'mon." He said to Kelly as he gathered her in his arms. She grunted as she felt herself being lifted. She wrapped her arms around his neck and groaned his name.

"Peter…" She sounded so vulnerable and a feeling of fright mixed with protection filled him.

"You can call the hospital. Tell them we're coming." He said as he made his way through the set toward the parking lot.

Ben was walking in his direction. He picked up speed as he saw Peter carrying a familiar blonde figure. "What happened?" He asked desperately.

"She fell." Peter answered hurriedly and kept walking, Ben now by his side.

"Need a ride?"

"You offering?"

"Yeah." Ben opened the door for them and they walked out into the sun.

"Where'd you park?"

"Over here." Ben led the way. He opened the backseat door of his SUV.

Peter slid himself and Kelly into the backseat. Ben took off. Peter kept her in his lap as they rode to the hospital.

"How's she doing?"

"Unconscious again." Peter said, keeping his gaze on her. "But I think the bleeding's stopped."

In about five minutes, they pulled into the emergency room entrance. Ben quickly got out of the car to get the door for them. However, Peter didn't wait for him. Instead, he popped the door open and slid out. The power doors whooshed open and Peter walked hurriedly through them. Ben was right behind him. Because they had called ahead, a team was waiting for them with a hospital bed. Peter placed her on the bed and began rattling off information.

"38. No allergies. Healthy. She woke up right after it happened but went unconscious on the way over. The bleeding stopped in the car."

One of the young men looked her over as he listened to Peter. He noticed their rings.

"You her husband?" He asked quickly, finally looking up at Peter.

"… Coworker." There was definite hesitation. Ben noticed and looked at Peter with an almost confused glare in his eyes.

"We'll take good care of her." The young man assured the two men as Kelly was rushed back. Peter watched the swinging doors until he could no longer see her.

"I better go park my car." Ben said, breaking Peter out of his trance.

"Yeah." Peter said quietly as he turned to look toward Ben. Ben was already in his car by the time Peter turned. Peter made his way toward the waiting area and sat down in the most uncomfortable seats known to man. Within a few minutes, Ben walked back in and sat beside Peter.

"I hate hospitals." He murmured.

"Me too." Peter whispered. He was hunched over, looking at his hands.

"I'm going to get coffee." Ben said, as he stood up. He was already getting shaky and he felt the warm liquid would calm him a bit. "Want some?"

"Yes, please."

It took about fifteen minutes for Ben to find the cafeteria, buy the coffee, and bring it back to the waiting room.

"Here you go." Ben said as he handed Peter the cup.

"Thanks." He mumbled before taking a sip.

Ben took big gulps of his and finished a lot earlier than Peter. With the last sip, Ben looked at his watch.

"Oh, man." He stood back up and looked at Peter. "I better head back. I've still got scenes to go. You staying?"

"Yeah. Uh, I'll call you when I know something."

"Okay."

Ben had been gone for about 45 minutes. Peter was staring intently at the coffee cup in his hands when the same young man came up to him.

"She's in room 242 if you want to go see her." Peter stood up quickly and continued to look at the doctor. As if reading his mind, the doctor added with a smile. "She's going to be fine." Peter exhaled; he hadn't even realized that he was holding his breath.

He passed room after room going towards 242. Finally, he got there and quietly peered into the room. It looked as if she were sleeping but when Peter appeared in her doorway, her blue eyes opened and she smiled at him.

"Hey." She said, faintly.

"Hey." He replied as he smiled softly. She seemed to be fine, just as the doctor had said.

He slowly walked in and sat beside her on the bed. "How do you feel?" He placed his hands on either side of her.

"They have me on pain medication so I feel really good." She said with a goofy grin. It was infectious and Peter couldn't help but grin back.

He leaned down. One hand cupped her cheek as he placed a kiss on her forehead.

"You really scared me." He whispered, his lips still brushing against her forehead.

Kelly's spine tingled at the intimate contact and her skin became covered in goose bumps. Her cheeks flushed a light pink.

Peter pulled back. He was aware that touching her like that off camera could be considered over the line. After all, he was married. They were friends. However, he couldn't deny that it had felt completely right to do.

"That floor has always been slick. They shouldn't have put you in just socks." Kelly smiled at his soft-spoken anger.

"Well, thank you for bringing me to the hospital. My hero." She gently touched his hand. Peter smiled at the tender gesture before turning serious.

"Did you have to get stitches?"

"No. It was only a tiny cut. But if I learned anything in anatomy class, the tiniest cut on the head can produce a lot of blood."

"I must agree." Peter had to chuckle as he looked down at his frightening appearance. His shirt and pants were splattered with the red substance.

"Oh my gosh! Peter!" She exclaimed. "I'll pay for the dry cleaning."

"Are you kidding?" She looked at him confused. "These are going in my Kelly Rowan shrine." She chuckled and rolled her eyes before closing them.

One of her hands touched the other and she opened her eyes upon feeling the metal residing on her left hand. She looked up at Peter and smiled reminded of the last time they were in this position.

"They survived this time." She said, wiggling her fingers.

Peter smiled at her. "I thought you were supposed to get an upgrade." He said thoughtfully.

Kelly gasped softly. "That's right!" She exclaimed quietly, her eyes widening a little.

As Kelly continued to stare at the rings, Peter looked her over. She looked perfectly fine. He noticed she was wearing a hospital gown. He couldn't help but wonder if she was wearing anything underneath it. Everyone knew it was customary to be naked under a hospital gown.

Kelly noticed his staring. "What?" She blushed underneath his gaze. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Peter was struck speechless. Obviously, he couldn't tell her the truth that he was picturing her naked. Much to his relief, he didn't have to lie to her because just then, the rest of their co-workers walked into her room.

"Kelly!" Melinda shrieked. The way she yelled made it seem like she hadn't seen Kelly in forty years and they were about to catch up at a high school reunion rather than visiting in a hospital room. Peter stood up from his spot beside her.

"Mom, are you okay?" Adam asked, using her affectionate nickname given to her so long ago.

She smiled at the nickname. "Yes. Just a bump on the head."

"Well you made quite the mess." Adam added. They had all seen the Cohen foyer or as they had already started calling it 'the crime scene.' It had them questioning what show they were working on. 'The O.C.' or 'C.S.I.'?

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad." Kelly had to defend herself.

"Well, just look at Peter!" Autumn mentioned.

"Holy crap!" Willa spoke what they all were thinking.

"I always say: If you're going to bleed might as well bleed everywhere." Adam chuckled.

"I think she just did it for attention." Rachel finally spoke up. Her statement made everyone laugh.

"Yeah. That's it." Kelly agreed. "I figured with the show ending I had to do something that would stay in your minds forever. Busting my head on the floor and bleeding everywhere seemed like such a good idea at the time." Everyone smiled and chuckled.

The group was still chatting when Kelly's doctor came into the room to talk to her. Kelly's first question was when she could leave. Luckily for her, the doctor said she was clear to check out whenever she felt ready. He mentioned that her pain meds would really kick in soon and she would need someone to drive her home.

Peter opened his mouth to offer but Melinda cut in and insisted that she do it before Peter even got a syllable out. The doctor then confirmed Peter's earlier suspicious by mentioning her gown and her other clothes. He looked down at the floor tiles, trying to keep from thinking of her inappropriately.

The cast, excluding Melinda, said their goodbyes to Kelly and exited the room. As the group was about to go through the sliding doors, Peter interjected into the conversation.

"I hate to bother any of you but could someone give me a ride to my car?"

"Oh. I'll do it." Ben spoke up.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I'd love to." Ben said with a smile and he batted his eyelashes.

Peter laughed at his enthusiasm. "Settle down, Ben. It's not a date."

The two men chuckled and walked to Ben's car.

"Peter," Ben said cautiously as he began driving. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"Of course. Sounds serious."

"I guess it kind of is." Ben said thoughtfully. "I couldn't help but notice how you were with Kelly today." Peter gave him a kind of odd look. Ben noticed but continued. "The way you cradled her in your arms, checked on her the way to the hospital. And when that doctor asked if you were her husband," Ben looked over at Peter. He was looking down at his shoes. "It seemed like you really wanted to say yes."

Peter remained silent so Ben continued on. "I get it. You work closely with her. Maybe that's all this is. None of us have said anything to anyone, even each other, about this. But I think we all would agree that you two seem to share this chemistry. This unspoken communication between the two of you flows every time you are around each other.

"I know that this is probably none of my business." Ben paused, almost afraid to continue. "I see the way you two look at each other even when the cameras are not rolling. I know you're married and all." At this point in the conversation, Ben had already pulled up onto the lot and was stopped in front of Peter's car. Ben turned to Peter.

"And I might just be seeing things, making this all up. It could be complete innocent friendship. But if it isn't? I don't want the show to end and you feel a deep regret for never doing anything about it. Like I said, this isn't really my business. I didn't mean to put ideas into your head or anything. I just felt like I needed to bring it to your attention. And none of my suspicions will leave this car. I'll never speak of any of this again unless you instigate the conversation. Rumors can be really ugly things." He paused before adding one more thing. "And I won't ask you for confirmation that my suspicions are true. I just needed to get this off my chest."

Peter had not said a thing during Ben's entire speech. Truth be told, he had been in denial about this. A four year long denial. He looked Ben in the eyes once more. "Thanks for the ride, Ben. And the speech. I'll think about what you said. And thanks for keeping this to yourself." Ben nodded in understanding.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Peter said as he stepped out of the car.

"Yeah." Ben agreed before driving off. Peter got into his car and cranked it. He put his head on the head rest, sighed exhaustedly, and closed his eyes. "Guess I've got a lot to ponder." He said to himself before putting his car in reverse and pulling out of the lot.

Meanwhile, Melinda had managed to get Kelly home finally. The pain meds had _definitely _kicked in. Kelly seemed to be in limbo between high on pot and incredibly drunk. She was slurring almost all of her words and continually smiling like an idiot. Melinda started to wonder if the doctors had given her too much. Unlocking the door even became a problem.

Getting Kelly to the front door was the first crazy attempt of the night. Kelly had not said a word the entire ride over to her house. Melinda just assumed she was asleep. Later, Melinda was very thankful that Kelly seemed out of it on the ride over. If she had been as loopy as she was later on, both of them could have ended up in the hospital. Kelly probably would have hung her body out the window or grabbed the steering wheel with her feet.

Melinda parked her car in front of Kelly's home and walked toward the door to go ahead and unlock it. Halfway up the stairs, Melinda heard a smack. She turned around to see Kelly sitting in her driveway, having just tripped out of the car, laughing her head off.

First, Melinda's heart jumped into her throat. Her friend that just got out of the hospital for a _head_ injury just fell again. How could she have let this happen?

Second, Melinda rolled her eyes at her friend's behavior. Something told her the medication was working.

Melinda raced over to see Kelly. She inspected her quickly, her eyes scanning over what they could see.

"Are you alright?"

"Me-linda!" Kelly shrieked as if she had not seen her in forever. "When did you get here?" There was a giant smile plastered on her face before she gasped loudly. "Are we having a party?" Her eyes got wide and she grinned. "P. A. R. T. Why? Because I _gotta_." She said with oomph while throwing her arm in the air before laughing again.

Melinda rolled her eyes at her. "Are you okay?" She asked. When it seemed that Kelly was fine, Melinda hooked Kelly's arm around her neck and hoisted her up. "C'mon." Kelly groaned and put up a small fight. "Kelly, quit!" That seemed to do the trick and Kelly simmered.

Melinda got them to the front door and leaned Kelly against the wall to keep her up. Melinda fumbled with the key and lock.

"Hey! I know how to do this!" Kelly shrieked, suddenly alive again. Her hand went immediately for the key and she started pulling and scratching at Melinda's hand for possession of the key. "C'mon! Let me have it."

"Kelly, just let me do this!"

"My house! My key!" Kelly yelled at her but she wouldn't let go of the key. "Mindy!" Kelly was fed up now. She let go of Melinda's hand and glowered at her.

Melinda was relieved once Kelly released her hand. She concentrated again on unlocking the front door. They had spent five minutes already trying to accomplish this easy task. She almost had it when she felt a sudden weight on her back.

_You have got to be kidding me! _She screamed in her mind. Kelly Rowan was on her back! "What are you doing?!" Melinda squealed.

"Ha-Ha! Unlock it now! If you can!" Kelly shrieked and put her hands in Melinda's face.

Melinda resisted the urge to bite Kelly's fingers that were extremely close to her mouth. This night was definitely turning out to be more than she had signed up for. She knew that Kelly was on medicine and probably dizzy. So Melinda did the friendly thing and let Kelly be crazy and completely annoying. She held onto one of Kelly's legs, holding her up, so she wouldn't fall and crack her head again.

Amidst fingers in her face, Melinda finally pushed open the front door. Once it opened up, Kelly jumped off of Melinda's back and walked into the house. "Hey! You got it open!" Kelly sounded amazed, as if it had never been done before and she hadn't just been on Melinda's back. Melinda shook her head.

Suddenly, Kelly clapped her hands. In high school, Kelly's friend had taught her how to clap incredibly loud. This, accompanied with the fact that the house had high ceilings, caused an extremely loud noise to echo throughout the house. It sounded like someone had thrown a safe on the floor.

Needless to say, Melinda was not expecting this loud noise. She jumped and her eyes got really wide. Her head whipped around and she glared at Kelly. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

"Oh! I have a question." Kelly said, not at all noticing the shock on Melinda's face or the fact that said woman was practically hyperventilating. "Where is my car?" She asked, taking her time with each word.

Melinda looked at her with a blank stare for a second. _Was she serious_? A few more moments of staring. _She was_. Melinda shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Today at work you slipped and hit your head. Peter and Ben took you to the hospital and your car is still at work." Melinda explained slowly.

For a few moments, Kelly stared blankly at Melinda. Suddenly, realization spread across her face. "Oh, yeah! I remember that!" Kelly made it sound like it happened years ago rather than only a few hours. Melinda shook her head in agreement, tired of this game already.

"Let's get you to bed."

"Kay." Then the slurring really began. Kelly hopped over to Melinda and thankfully didn't fall. "Know what I just realized?" Kelly asked as they walked toward her bedroom.

"No idea." Melinda answered.

"If you take out the 'Me' in 'Melinda' you get…" She paused as if this revelation was going to blow everyone away. "_Linda_." She whispered with her eyes widening.

Melinda raised her eyebrows at this. "Oh my gosh, Kelly. You are totally right. I'll have to remember that." She shook her head up and down as well. Kelly didn't seem to catch on to the fact that she might as well have just said that two plus two is four.

"I'm glad I could help." She said sincerely.

They made it all the way to the bedroom without a hitch. Kelly gasped in awe when she walked into the bedroom.

"I live here." It wasn't a question, it was a statement. Another pointless one, Melinda noted.

"Yes, you do, sweetie." Melinda agreed.

Kelly turned to her and made a sour face. "Don't call me sweetie. My mom calls me that. You're not my mom, Linda Larke." She said as she shook her head before turning to look at the bed. She squealed before propelling herself onto it. She flopped around on it lightly.

Melinda shook her head once more. "No, I'm not." She said mostly to herself. "Where are your pajamas?" She asked Kelly.

Kelly was too busy messing up the blankets and sheets to look up. Although, she did answer. "Middle left drawer." She said, occupied elsewhere.

Melinda was surprised when she opened the middle left drawer and it was actually pajamas. She threw them at Kelly whose attention was ripped away from the pillows by the flying clothing. She grabbed it quickly in her hands and looked them over before looking up at Melinda.

"Well, get out, Linda. I can't change in front of you!"

"Alright, fine." Melinda said shrugging. She put her hands up and exited the room. "I'll be right out here."

"Good to know. Don't understand why you want to see me naked so badly but whatever." She mumbled to herself, although Melinda could definitely hear her. She shook her head as she closed the door.

After what seemed like forever, Kelly yelled for her to come back in. Melinda was shocked to find that Kelly had actually managed to put on her pajamas correctly. She was lying in bed very civilly and looked at Melinda as if she were expecting a bedtime story.

"Well, looks like everything is okay here." Melinda walked to Kelly's side of the bed and looked down at her. "You had a big day." Melinda couldn't help but feel like she was talking to a small child. "Get some sleep and I'll come by to check up on you tomorrow morning."

"Okay." Kelly yawned. Melinda headed toward the door. Kelly started talking again. This time she spoke sleepily and she already had her eyes closed.

"That was nice of Peter to take care of me today." This got Melinda to stop. "I love him." This got her to turn and look at the body under the covers. "He's so sweet." Kelly's closed eyes scrunched as if she was picturing him. Then a smile spread across her face. She sighed once more before repeating, even more faintly than before. "I love him."

Melinda couldn't help but smile thoughtfully at Kelly's words. Perhaps it was just the meds putting ideas in her head. Or perhaps it was the meds giving her the excuse to say them out loud. Melinda believed it was the latter.

"Go to sleep." She instructed softly. Kelly made a sleepy sound and with that Melinda left. As she drove, she thought of what Kelly had said. Melinda really believed that Kelly had meant it.

On the drive to his house, Peter had thought about what Ben said in the car. He continued to think as he walked through his house. His family hadn't seem to notice his arrival. They must have been in their respective rooms. To tell the truth, Peter hadn't really been all that interested. He climbed in the shower, hoping to clear his mind so he could lay in bed and start the thinking process all over again.

He was in bed once his wife found his clothes. She shrieked and demanded to know what this bag was sitting in their bathroom. Peter explained what had happened and Paula seemed genuinely concerned for Kelly's health.

"Is she okay?"

"She's fine."

And with that, their conversation was over. Paula slid into her side of the bed and clicked her light off, sending the entire room into darkness. Soon, the sound of her sleeping could be heard. Peter was still awake, staring at the ceiling and trying to make sense of his feelings.

He thought of all these years working side by side with Kelly.

Kissing her while they were in character. Sometimes wanting the director to fall mute and never be able to yell cut.

How restricted he had felt that second year of filming. Kirsten and Sandy were fighting. Neither one was getting lucky which also meant that the actors who portrayed them wouldn't get to kiss either.

He thought about how scared he had been today when she had fallen. He worried he was as he sat in the waiting room.

He considered how protective he became over her when he picked her up. He recalled how he cradled her. How good she felt in his arms as he did so.

He remembered the feeling that swept over him as she said his name when he picked her up. In her own way, pleading with him to take care of her.

The trust she had in him. She knew that he would take care of her.

Once he felt too sleepy to continue thinking, Peter turned onto his side and stared at the back of the blonde haired woman's head. The wrong blonde haired woman.

That night, Kelly slept peacefully, dreaming a drug-induced dream with bright colors and happiness. It was a dream about a guy and a girl. They seemed familiar although she couldn't tell who it was. They were happy.

In the comfort of her own bed, cuddled up with her husband, Melinda thought of her friends, her coworkers. Thought of what Kelly had said and how Peter had acted today. He had hid it well but she still noticed. She soon slipped into slumber, despite her still busy mind, lulled by the deep breathing of the man she was wrapped up in.

Down the busy road and to the right, Ben slept uneasily, unsure of whether or not what he had said to Peter had stepped over the line.

Peter slept that night, torn. Thinking of the blonde across the bed from him and how distant she felt even though she was in the same bed. He turned over to face the window rather than her and began thinking of the blonde across town and how close she felt though she was miles away. He wasn't sure but he thought he might be wishing that she was in the bed next to him instead.

He finally went to sleep that night and dreamt. He dreamt a dream about a guy and a girl. One was brunette and one was blonde. And they were both happy.


	2. What do you want?

"_What easy way? There is no easy way, no matter what I do, somebody gets hurt."_

"_Would you stop thinking about what everyone wants? Stop thinking about what I want, what he wants, what your parents want. What do YOU want? What do you WANT?"_

"_It's not that simple."_

"_What… do… you… want? Whaddaya want?"_

"_I have to go now."_

- The Notebook

Peter awoke with a nervous feeling in his stomach that stayed with him as he showered and dressed.

Kelly woke up with a groggy pain throughout her body. It was slowing her down and she knew that she could not afford to be slow at work.

She made her way toward her kitchen and found her prescriptions on the counter where, she assumed, Melinda had placed them the night before. She was having trouble remembering what happened after leaving the hospital.

She cut a pill in half, like the doctor had instructed, and washed the medicine down with a drink of water. As the pill easily slid down her through, the doorbell rang.

When she opened the door, Melinda was waiting for her.

"Hey! You're up! I thought I was going to have to use the spare key." Melinda handed Kelly the key that she had taken the night before just in case.

"Thanks." Kelly said, accepting the key. "Come on in."

"So how do you feel?" Melinda asked, following Kelly into the kitchen.

"Okay." Kelly answered honestly. "I just took half of a pain pill."

Melinda stopped walking. "It's not going to make you loopy like you were last night, is it?"

"Loopy? I don't remember being loopy." Kelly replied, stepping into the kitchen. "After getting into your car to leave the hospital, my memory is kind of blank. I must have blacked out from the medication." Kelly said as she rummaged for something in a cabinet.

"No. Believe me. You were very awake." Melinda said, sitting down on a bar stool.

"Are you sure?" Kelly asked as her hand collided with what she had been searching for: granola bars. She pulled the box out and fished two bars out, offering one to Melinda.

"Am I sure?" Melinda repeated incredulously, putting her hand up to refuse the food. "Kelly, at one point, you jumped on my back."

Kelly's head shot up as she was putting the bar back into the box. "I did?"

"Yeah. You did." Melinda assured her, raising her eyebrows for emphasis.

"Please tell me that, for your sake, that was the only odd thing I did." Kelly winced, scared of the answer.

"Unfortunately, for me, no." Kelly's eyes widened. "Although, it was considerate and sweet of you to inform me of the fact that if the first two letters are taken out of my name that it leaves 'Linda.' That alone was mind-blowing."

For a moment, all Kelly could do was stare at Melinda. But a second after Melinda finished telling her that, Kelly couldn't help but giggle. "Well, at least it is true."

Melinda shrugged her shoulders in agreement.

"Do you feel like you can handle work?"

"Of course." Kelly said with a light chuckle. "Let me get dressed."

Upon arriving on set, Peter immediately sought out Ben. Without much searching, Peter found him near the food table, munching on an apple and reading over the script.

"Hey, man," Peter announced his presence.

Ben looked up at Peter and instantly felt a little bit uncomfortable considering their last conversation.

"…hey," he mumbled through a mouthful of apple.

"You busy?" Peter asked.

"Not really." Ben answered, closing the script. "Whatcha need?"

"Thank you." Peter began quickly. "You're right. I thought it over and realized I haven't been honest with myself, let alone anyone else."

"So… what happens now?"

"I get honest with everyone." Peter looked up and saw her. "Starting with…"

Ben followed Peter's gaze to Kelly. He stood up and offered his hand to Peter.

"Good luck, man."

Peter pulled him into a hug. "Seriously, thank you, Ben. You are a good friend."

Kelly heard a knock on her trailer door.

"Come in." She turned to greet her visitor.

"Hey," Peter said softly.

"Hey." They held each other's eyes for a tender moment which felt much longer. The intensity of their gaze should have been awkward but it was always like this with them.

"How are you feeling?"

She shrugged with indifference. "Not great, not horrible."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"But you've already done so much."

"I don't mind."

"That's sweet. I'm fine though." She assured him. "Thank you, again, so much for taking such good care of me."

"I actually was hoping to talk to you about yesterday."

"Okay." She was wary of his tone. "It sounds serious."

"It is."

"Oh. Ok. Should I sit?" She asked with a small chuckle, attempting to lighten the new tension in the room.

"Yesterday, I was… terrified." He paused. "There were moments… when I couldn't breathe. It didn't feel like my heart was beating until I walked into Room 242 and saw that you were okay." He paused. "I've never been so scared in my entire life. So I went home last night really confused and spent the whole night contemplating… everything really. The way I felt yesterday confirmed a lot of suspicions I've had about… everything. I realized I haven't been honest with myself and I've repressed a lot." He paused. "I need to be honest with everyone but I'm starting with you." He looked into her eyes. "Kelly, from the first time we met…"

"Don't." She was looking at him with a face he'd never seen. "Just… don't."

"Don't what?"

"I have this crazy feeling that you are going to tell me that you have feelings for me." She said as she smiled and shook her head, hoping he was going to tell her she was wrong.

"You're right. I am."

"No, you're not."

"Why not?" He began moving closer to her.

"Because you don't mean it." Kelly's eyes were no longer on Peter.

"Yes. I do!"

"You might today but you won't tomorrow. Or the next day." She finally looked up at him. He was standing right in front of her.

"Why not?" He asked softly, her head in his hands.

"Because you are married." She needed to pull away from his touch but could not bear to.

"Doesn't change the way I feel."

"It might not change your feelings but it will change your actions."

"How do you know?"

"Because I know you." Her voice broke as she finally tore herself away from his soft grip. Tears were flowing freely from her eyes. She had to turn her back to him. "I know that you love your family. You would never leave your kids."

"What if I didn't leave them?"

Kelly turned back to him, shocked. "An affair? Peter."

"No. I want to be with you. Is that the way you see it – them or you?" Peter was confused and a little hurt. He had never thought Kelly disliked children.

"Don't you dare think that, Peter Gallagher! I love your kids."

"Then what is the problem?"

"I can't break up a family. What if they hate you? What if they pick her and you never see them again? I'm not worth that."

"You aren't breaking up my family. My family has been broken for a while now. Before I even knew you, it was falling apart." He took her face back into his hands. "I want to be with you, Kelly Rowan. There it is. I've said it. Now, what do you want?"

Her face was in his hands but she was avoided his eyes. "I can't be that woman." She said mostly to herself.

"That's not an answer. What do you want, Kelly?"

"I can't do it. Ruin a family." She was still talking to herself.

Peter moved his head, trying to force her to meet his eyes. "I didn't ask you what you can't do! I'm asking you what you _want!_" He spoke, obviously very frustrated.

"It doesn't matter what I want."

"Of course it does!" She shook her head. "Kelly! Kelly. Look at me!" Finally, she did. Peter then spoke softly, punctuating each word. "What. Do. You. Want."

"I can't. I have to go." Her eyes were full of tears as she left.

"What's wrong?" Melinda asked as Kelly finally returned to the set for her next scene. She had to stop in a private area and do some deep breathing for a few minutes so she could blink away her tears and look normal. Apparently, her efforts had been in vain considering Melinda knew immediately that something had changed.

"Nothing," Kelly answered quickly.

"Kelly…" Melinda pried.

"Just a fight with my mom. No big deal." She was still speaking quickly as she lied. Then Peter entered the room, capturing Kelly's eyes. She immediately looked away. He approached Kelly and Melinda.

"Hey. I need to talk to Kelly for a minute." Peter told Melinda.

"At your own risk." Melinda answered under her breath as she walked away. It was not often Kelly was short with her and Melinda had to admit it had hurt her feelings.

Peter looked back at Kelly after Melinda had left. She still would not look at him. "Look. I know you don't want to talk to me and that's fine. But let's be professional during filming." He leaned into her ear and whispered. "Even though you hate me right now, when we kiss, please don't bite." He smiled and winked at her as he walked away.

Kelly was perturbed by Peter's actions. How could he be so flippant about what had just happened? Plus, who was he to tell her to be professional? She felt insulted that he thought he needed to tell her that.

Action was called and scenes were filmed. It was the end of the day and there had been no other conversations with Peter. Kelly was in her trailer, gathering her stuff, simply ready to go home. Then, she heard a knock on the door.

She groaned before calling out, "Come in." She prayed it was not Peter at her door. It was Melinda.

"Hey."

"Hey."

Melinda decided to just cut to the chase. "What's wrong with you?" Before Kelly could play dumb, Melinda continued. "This is not a fight with your mother. This is something else." When Kelly could not make eye contact, Melinda knew she was right. "C'mon. Let's go to your house. Eat some ice cream and you can dish." Kelly smiled at her before frowning again and hesitating. "C'mon. Kelly… You know you want to."

Kelly looked back up at Melinda. She had puppy dog eyes and Kelly found it impossible to say no. Plus, if anyone could help, it would be Melinda. "Okay."

Melinda and Kelly sat in Kelly's kitchen at the bar. Three separate flavors of ice cream between the two of them.

"So," Melinda began as she slurped a spoonful of mint chocolate chip into her mouth. "What's up, Rowan?"

Kelly took a deep breath as she studied her rocky road. "Peter says he has feelings for me. That he wants to be with me."

"Great!" Melinda exclaimed.

"Great?"

"Not great?"

"No, not great!" Kelly shouted, incredulous.

"Why not great?"

"Because! For one, he is married." She paused for a brief moment. "And second, his kids!"

"Well… he's not just going to be able to stop having feelings for you. And you can't stop your feelings for him…"

"My feelings for him?

"Um… yes." _Certainly she is not about to deny it,_ Melinda thought.

"He's my coworker."

_Apparently, she is. _Melinda rolled her eyes at her friend. "Oh, Kelly. C'mon. You know that I know that you know he is more than that. I'm pretty sure everyone knows that."

"But…"

"Kelly, he wants to be with you." She paused. "So the only question is, what do you want?"

Kelly did not have any more of an answer now than she did when Peter had asked. She looked back down at her ice cream, feeling a huge weight on her shoulders.

The next day, Kelly finally knew where she stood.

"Peter, can I talk to you?"

"Yeah. Sure."

She walked into her trailer and he followed behind. He remained silent and waited for her to start. Without a word, she turned to him and stared into the blue eyes she knew so well. Before Peter knew what was happening, Kelly was in his arms. Her lips were pressed desperately to his. He could not believe Kelly was kissing him. Peter responded to her, running his hands up her back and through her hair.

She pulled away but remained in his embrace. Their eyes met. Hers were dancing as his smiled.

"Do you know how long I've wanted to do that?" He asked, breathlessly.

"Ask me again." She was smiling and it was infectious.

"Do you know how…"

"No!" She giggled. "The other question."

He seemed confused. She pulled at his neck and he lowered his ear to her mouth.

"_What do I want?" _She whispered, sending chills down his spine.

He smiled and obeyed. "What do you want, Kelly?"

She answered quickly. "You. I want you."

He smiled wider than she had ever seen him smile. Suddenly, she felt herself pulled into him, his strong arms surrounding her small frame. His lips were urgently glued to hers. They both smiled into their kiss, unable to contain their excitement and happiness.

Kelly groaned as she broke their kiss. She had not wanted to but knew she had to.

"Peter, wait."

"I've _been_ waiting." His voice was so low; it sent shivers up and down Kelly's spine. He tried to pull her against him again but her hands against his chest stopped him.

"We can't do this."

"What?" She had feelings for him. He returned her feelings. But they could not do this? Peter could not understand.

"Not yet." She clarified. "I cannot be with you when you are married."

"But…" Peter felt that they had been putting their feelings on hold for so long. He just wanted to be with her.

"Peter." She held his face in her hands. "You need to put your family first. I can wait. Talk to Paula. Sort out what's wrong that relationship. Genuinely try to fix it. If I only serve the purpose of making you realize how much you love your wife, so be it. She deserves your honesty, Peter. So do your kids. Figure out if a divorce is really what you want."

Peter smiled at her. "You care so much for others and constantly put them above yourself. I have a lot to learn from you, Kelly Rowan."

She smiled back at him. "I'll wait for you, Peter. Whatever the outcome, whatever we become, just friends or more than that, I'll wait, patiently."

Despite his head telling him one thing, his heart another, and still his body another, Peter knew Kelly was right. Paula and his children deserved for him to try to work things out. He honestly did not want to hurt anyone. But Peter felt peaceful knowing that whatever happened, Kelly would be waiting.


End file.
